Precedent

OAK PARK — Jack Bass` column ``Political science fiction: Sen. Carter`` says that Sen. Carter would be ``the first former president ever to serve in the Senate.``

Not quite the first.

According to the Britannica, Andrew Jackson was returned to the Senate in 1875 after having left the White House. His second service in the Senate was brief, lasting only about five months, but it did occur, and he used the opportunity to defend his presidency.